Tommy Leigh fired home from the spot to rescue a point for Accrington Stanley against the in-form Tykes.

It was Leigh’s eighth goal of the campaign and extended Stanley’s unbeaten run to six games in all competitions.

Promotion-chasing Barnsley, who had won their previous five league games, opened the scoring on eight minutes when former Stanley loanee Adam Phillips played a ball into the area and it found James Norwood around six yards out and he flicked it into the net.

Phillips had a couple of long range efforts which didn’t test Toby Savin while Stanley’s best early chance came on 27 minutes when Mitch Clark’s ball into the box found the head of Joe Pritchard but he could only find the arms of keeper Bradley Collins.

Devante Cole fired narrowly over for the Tykes a minute later while a Pritchard ball in bounced right in front of the keeper and had to be touched over the bar by Collins.

Just before half-time, another Phillips strike was kept out by Savin and Nicky Cadden’s goalbound strike was blocked.

Rosaire Longelo came on at half-time for Clark, who had been ill this week, but it was Barnsley who started the second half well.

Cadden’s shot was pushed out by Savin and, from the resulting corner, Cole fired over almost on the goalline.

Young striker Leslie Adekoya came on on 50 minutes as Stanley chased the game and Shaun Whalley got the ball in the area but fired across the goal and wide.

The Reds levelled on 62 minutes when Pritchard’s strike was judged to have hit the hand of a Barnsley player and Leigh rifled the penalty home.

The game was then wide open with both side’s creating half-chances and Barnsley appealing for a penalty.

Savin was then the Stanley hero on 80 minutes, making a fantastic save after Phillips had burst free.

It was backs-to-the-walls in five minutes of injury time but the Reds held on for a point.

Stanley: Savin, Clark (Longelo), Astley, Fernandes (Adekoya), Rodgers, Conneely, Coyle, Hamilton, Whalley (Woods), Pritchard, Leigh (Perritt)

Subs: Jensen, Nolan, Martin

Yellow: Conneely, Perritt

Crowd: 4,791 (1,999)